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61. Intelligence Forwarded by Sir Alexander Burnes Relating to Progress of the British Invasion of Afghanistan (First Anglo-Afghan War, 1839-1842)
- Description:
- Abstract: Copies of intelligence despatches from Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Alexander Burnes, Envoy to Kelat [Kalat, also spelled Khelat in this volume], to William Hay Macnaghten, Envoy and Minister at Shah Shoojah’s Camp [Shah Shuja ul-Mulk], (copied to John Pollard Willoughby, Secretary to the Government, Bombay [Mumbai]).The intelligence chiefly covers:Burnes’s negotiations with the Khan of Kelat, with regard to the latter facilitating the progress of the British Army of the Indus and its protection through his territory into Afghanistan, notably through the Bolan Pass; the Khan’s attitude towards Shah Shoojah; conditions of his agreement to co-operate with the British; and the subsidy to be paid to him by the BritishThe situation in Candahar [Kandahar] and the overtures and veiled threats sent by Burnes to Sirdar Ruhm Dil Khan [Ruhim Dil Khan], the moollahs [mullahs] and authorities in Candahar, advising them to support the British advance into Afghanistan and Shah ShoojahOvertures and veiled threats sent by Burnes to the tribal leaders and inhabitants of Pisheen [Pishin] advising them to support the British advanceThe likelihood of Persia [Iran] and Russia aiding Dost Mohammed [Dōst Moḥammad Khān, Bārakzay] against Shah Shoojah and the BritishThe difficult terrain and problems with the supply of grain, forage and water for the Army of the Indus.The item also includes a copy of the ‘News letter’ 12 April 1839, conveying intelligence on affairs in Lahore, Peshawur [Peshawar], Scinde [Sindh], Candahar, Khelat, Herat, Ava, the Army of the Indus, Nipal [Nepal], and Bushire [Būshehr] (ff 137-142).Physical description: The papers are not in chronological order.
62. Events in Afghanistan and the Neighbouring Countries
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Government of India Secret Department to the East India Company Secret Committee, Number 5 of 1838, dated 5 April 1838. The enclosures are dated 29 January-5 April 1838.The item comprises: despatches between Captain Claude Martine Wade, Political Agent in Loodiana [Ludhiana, also spelled Lodhiana in this item], and William Hay Macnaghten, Secretary to the Governor-General of India; and letters from Captain Alexander Burnes, on a Mission to Cabool [Kabul, also spelled this way and Kabool in this item] to Macnaghten.The despatches concern: British policy towards and relations with the ruling parties in Afghanistan and with the Sikh Ruler Maharajah Runjeet Singh [Ranjit Singh, Ruler of the Sikh Empire, also spelled Maharajah and Maha Raja in this item]; the latter two’s relations with each other, notably over Peshawur [Peshawar, also spelled this way in this item]; and the Afghan rulers’ relations with each other and with Russia and Persia [Iran]. The correspondence takes place during the Persian siege of Herat.The papers cover the following matters in detail:The activities of the Russian Envoy, Captain Vitkievitsch [Jan Prosper Witkiewicz, various spellings used in this item] in Cabool, including: Vitkievitsch’s alleged pressure on the Ameer [Amir] of Cabool, Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy], to respond to friendly overtures from the Russian Emperor and the Russian Ambassador at Tehran and promises of money and aid in return for aid to Persia and Russia against Herat; Burnes’s attempts to influence Dost Mahomed’s replies to the letters brought by Vitkievitsch (ff 164-173); and Wade’s opinion of Vitkievitsch’s status and the aims of Persia and Russia in Afghanistan, and his belief that Dost Mahomed is playing a ‘double-game’ (f 188) with Britain and Russia and should be made fully aware of his weak position and the undependability of Russian and Persian promises (ff 188-194)Burnes’s analysis of the commercial prospects of Russia in Central Asia (ff 120-125), and Wade’s doubts regarding Burnes’s conclusions (ff 178-179)The purported intention of Vitkievitsch to proceed to Lahore [also spelled Lahor in this item] with letters desiring the Sikhs to withdraw from Peshawur (ff 223-224) and the conversations between Runjeet Singh and Lieutenant Frederick Mackeson (deputed by Burnes to the Maharaja’s Court) concerning whether Runjeet Singh should receive the Russian EnvoyWade’s opinion that to avert Persian and Russian ‘intrigue’ in Lahore the Government of India should announce that it does not recognize Vitkievitsch’s authority to ‘interfere’ in the Maharaja’s affairs (ff 235-238), and Wade’s later report that the Maharaja has banned Vitkiewitsch from entering Peshawur territory (f 279)The report by Burnes of a failed conspiracy involving Sultan Mahomed Khan (allegedly encouraged by Runjeet Singh) to overthrow Dost Mahomed (ff 139-143), and Wade’s observations highlighting that such projects by the ‘ruler of Lahore’ have been occurring for years (ff 180-184)Runjeet Singh’s disclosure to Mackeson that he has obtained treaties of alliance with the former Governor of Peshawur, Sultan Mahomed Khan [Sulṭān Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy, also spelled Sooltan in this item] and former Afghan Ruler Shah Shuja ul Mulk [Shujā‘ al-Mulk Durrānī] both resigning all legal rights in Peshawur (ff 247-256)British relations with the three Sirdars [sardars, leaders or rulers] of Candahar [Kandahar], including: the conversations of Lieutenant Robert Leech, deputed by Burnes to Candahar, with the Sirdars, covering his efforts to prevent them allying with Persia out of fear of that country and the Ruler of Herat, reassure them of Britain’s purely commercial interests in the area and support for their independence, and discourage any belief in the Russian Envoy’s pecuniary promises (ff 112-119, 149-152); and following reprobation by the Governor-General, Burnes’s withdrawal of his offer of British assistance to Candahar if Persia attacks the city (ff 202-206)The siege of Herat, including: Burnes’s assessment of the geo-political situation in Herat and the neighbouring countries up to early February 1838 and the possible effects of Persian ascendancy (ff 128-137); intelligence from Burnes and Leech regarding the Persian military advance in Afghanistan, including reports of Lieutenant Eldred Pottinger and Lieutenant-Colonel Stoddart based in Herat and the Shah of Persia’s camp outside the city (ff 145-147, ff 174-175, f 186, and ff 261-276); and Wade’s speculations on the potential political outcomes of Persian success or failure in HeratThe effect of the Governor-General’s khurreeta [kharita] to Dost Mahomed urging the Ameer to make friendly approaches to Runjeet Singh regarding Peshawur, including: Burnes’s advice to the Ameer to ‘reflect deeply’ before replying and potentially losing the ‘good offices’ of the British (ff 208-215); Dost Mahomed’s dissatisfaction with the apparent British indifference to his ‘suffering’ (f 228) with regard to Sikh ‘aggression’, his deep reluctance towards the restoration of his estranged brother Sultan Mahomed Khan to Peshawur, and disappointment at the lack of a British promise of protection from Persia; Burnes’s realisation that he may have to leave Cabool to save ‘national honour’ due to dwindling hopes for a suitable connection with the Ameer (ff 225-232); and Wade’s observations on Dost Mahomed, criticism of his ‘extravagant expectations’, and belief that he ‘will endeavour to temporise [between Persia and Britain] until the fate of Herat is decided’ (ff 239-245)The progress of Dr Percival Lord and Lieutenant John Wood in Koondooz [Kunduz] in connection with treating the eye ailment of the Koondooz Ruler’s brother, the improvement of British commercial prospects in the area, and Wood’s exploratory field work (ff 154-161).Physical description: 1 item (207 folios)
63. Preparations for the First Anglo-Afghan War
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Governor-General of India, Allahabad, Secret Department, to the East India Company Secret Committee, Number 29A of 1842, dated 16 August 1842. The enclosures are numbered 1-12 and dated 7-28 July 1842. There is no abstract of contents.The enclosures consist of letters relating to political and military affairs in Cabool [Kabul], Ghuznee [Ghazni], Jellalabad [Jalalabad], Candahar [Kandahar], Quetta, Shikarpore [Shikarpur], and the Punjab, with particular reference to the East India Company’s preparations for war in Afghanistan (the First Anglo-Afghan War, July 1839-October 1842). There are occasional corrections and annotations in pencil throughout this item.The principal correspondents are: Lord Ellenborough, Governor-General; Major Outram, Quetta; Major General William Nott; and Major General I G Pollock, CB.Physical description: 1 item (37 folios)
64. Preparations for the First Anglo-Afghan War
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises copies of enclosures to a despatch from the Governor-General of India, Allahabad, Secret Department, to the East India Company Secret Committee, Number 32 of 1842, dated 17 August 1842. The enclosures are numbered 3-159 and are dated 17 July-16 August 1842.The enclosures consist of correspondence relating to political and military affairs in: Bameean [Bamian], Cabool [Kabul], Jellalabad [Jalalabad], Candahar [Kandahar], Beloochistan [Baluchistan], Bokhara [Bukhara], Toorkistan [Turkistan], Kohistan, the North West Frontier, Punjab, Laddakh [Ladakh], and Sinde [Sindh]. Enclosures mainly relate to the East India Company’s diplomatic, military, and logistical preparations in conjunction with regional allies for war in Afghanistan (the First Anglo-Afghan War). Papers additionally cover the transportation to Cabool of camels and cattle through arrangements and agreements with local suppliers; accounts on the hiring of camels by the EIC between 1839-1842; schedules of the duty charged on the cargoes of traders from Sinde and Afghanistan; accounts on the conversion of units of measurement; descriptions of the import and export of goods and commodities to Bombay; descriptions of goods exported from Karachi to Muscat; lists of the traders, bankers and financiers, animal keepers, and traders in enslaved people present in Karachi.The item includes a sketch map of Shinwaree [Shinwari] Valley on folio 580. There is a note from an unspecified later date on folio 249 stating that enclosure No. 15 is missing, as well as the first folio of the abstract of contents.The correspondents include: Lord Ellenborough (Governor-General); Thomas Herbert Maddock (Secretary to the Government of India and the Governor-General); General Sir Jasper Nicolls, KCB (Commander-in-Chief of British Forces, Head Quarters, Simla [Shimla]); Lieutenant-Colonel Melville (Secretary to the Government of Bombay); Captain Henry Montgomery Lawrence (Assistant Agent to the Governor-General); Major-General William Nott (Commander, Lower Afghanistan and Sinde); Major James Outram (Political Agent, Sinde and Baluchistan); Captain E I Brown (Assistant Political Agent, Sinde and Baluchistan); W F Hammersley (Assistant Political Agent In Charge, Sinde and Baluchistan); Lieutenant-Colonel N Wallace (Commander, Sukkur and Upper Sinde); Captain W C Stather (Staff Officer, Sukkur); R N C Hamilton (Secretary to Lieutenant Governor, North West Provinces); George Clark (Agent to the Governor-General, North West Provinces); Arthur Malet (Political Agent, Kutch); Lieutenant-Colonel I Parsons (Deputy Commissary General); Captain G Pope (Assistant Commissary General); and Captain C W Hart (Acting Interpreter, Sinde Residence).Physical description: 1 item (636 folios)
65. The Anglo-Persian War: Anglo-Persian Relations
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises one enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 15 dated 27 January 1857. The enclosure is dated 27 January 1857.The enclosure comprises despatches, dated 9-23 December 1856, of Charles A Murray, HM Envoy in Persia [Iran] (located in Baghdad at this time), for the attention of the Earl of Clarendon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. A number of Murray’s despatches enclose translated extracts of the Tehran Gazette, 6 and 27 November, which Murray summarizes and provides his opinion on in his covering letters to Clarendon.The papers notably cover the following matters:The capture and occupation of Herat by Persian forces, including the Persian Government’s claims to have been preventing Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzay] from taking the city in collusion with Colonel Esau Khan [Colonel ‘Īsá Khān, an Alakuzā'ī chief of Herat and nephew of Dost Mahomed], and proposing to give up Herat on condition that the three principalities – Candahar [Kandahar], Afghanistan and Herat - remain independent of each other and subservient to PersiaThe extensive power and ‘nepotism’ of the Persian Sedr Azim [Mīrzā Āqā Khān Nūrī, Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam, Eʿtemād al-Dawlah], including the appointment of his ‘21 or 22 years of age’ son as Persian Minister at War (ff 245-246)The lavish welcome receptions granted to the French minister Prosper Bourée at Tabreez [Tabriz], and to Count Arthur de Gobineau, French Chargé d’Affaires at TehranThe withdrawal from Persia of the British Consul in Tehran, Richard White Stevens, and Persian allegations of Stevens’s ‘duplicitous’ departure and the debts owed to Persian citizens by his brotherIntelligence forwarded by Murray from reports of unverified conversations of the Persian Consul in Baghdad, including claims that the Persian Government is sending large reinforcements to Mohamrah [Khorramshahr, formerly Mohammerah] and to Herat (to facilitate a march on Candahar), and claims that an agent of Russia is being sent to HeratA pro-Persian story published in a Belgian newspaper alleging that the Persian Government desires friendship with the British Government, and blaming the deterioration of relations between the two governments on the actions of British representatives in the region.Physical description: 1 item (26 folios)
66. Affairs in Scinde and Elsewhere
- Description:
- Abstract: This part of the volume consists of Enclosures to a Despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 72 of 1841, dated 1 September 1841. The enclosures are dated 30 March to 1 September 1841, and mostly relate to Scinde [Sindh, also spelled Sinde].The enclosures mostly consist of correspondence, and the following: précis of Intelligence from the Upper Scinde Agency; memoranda of occurrences at the Lower Scinde Agency; and newsletters from the Assistant Secretary to the Government of India.The main correspondents include: the Secretary to the Government of Bombay and the Acting Secretary to the Government of Bombay; the Secretary to the Government of India; the Political Agent, Lower Scinde [Sindh]; the Military Board; the Political Commissioner for Guzerat [Gujarat]; and the Quarter Master General of the Army.The enclosures include correspondence regarding: information requested by the Government of India on the medical statistics of the various stations of the troops employed to the Westward, and especially of Shaul, Cutchee, and Upper Scinde; the claim for compensation by the contractor of camels obtained at Pahlunpoor [Palanpur, also spelled Pahlunpore] in 1839 for use in Sinde; and other matters.The newsletters from the Assistant Secretary to the Government of India report on news relating to places in India and elsewhere, including: the North West Frontier; Peshawur [Peshawar]; Upper Sinde; Lower Sinde; Gwalior; Cashmere [Kashmir]; Afghanistan, including Candahar [Kandahar]; Aden; Kokund [Kokand]; Persia [Iran], including Ispahan [Isfahan]; Baghdad; Muscat; Nepal (also spelled Nepaul); and China.Physical description: There is an abstract of contents of the despatch, numbered 1-60, on folios 454-464. These numbers are repeated for reference on the last verso of each enclosure. Enclosures 3-5, 49, and 53-58, listed in the abstract of contents, are not included in the volume.
67. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 24 of 1847, dated 12 March 1847. The enclosure is dated 14 January 1847.The item comprises copies of despatches forwarded, for the information of the Governor-General of India, by Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, HM Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], to Viscount Palmerston, HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, with relevant enclosures.The papers cover a number of matters, notably including:1) Sheil’s advice to Major Samuel Hennell, Political Resident in Bushire [Bushehr], not to admit the claim of an Indian-Persian merchant to be considered a British subject, since his motive is likely to be the evasion of legal customs duties and because acquiescence would cause conflict with the Persian [Iranian] authorities.2) An arrangement concluded by Hennell with the Governor of Fars for the employment of British ships of war for the redress of grievances committed against British subjects in the Persian ports of the Persian Gulf, and the extension of similar protection to Persian subjects.3) Following instructions from Palmerston, Sheil’s attempt to offer the Ameer of Bokhara [Amir of Bukhara] a ransom of 15,000 tomans for the surrender of Colonel Stoddart, Captain Connolly and Lieutenant W H Wyburd [William Henry Wybard] at either Meshed [Mashhad] or Merve [Merv], including a copy of Sheil’s letter to the Ameer (ff 488-489) to be delivered via the ‘Khaleefa or Chief Priest’ at Merve and which is written to appear derived from the friends of the three men, not on behalf of the British Government4) An attempt made by Prince Dolgorukie [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov], Russian Minister in Tehran, to induce the Persian Government to issue a firman admitting Russian men of war vessels to the ‘back water of Enzellee [Bandar-e Anzali]’ (on the Caspian Sea), including copies of a letter from Dolgoroukie and the reply of Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājī Mīrzā Āqāsī, Prime Minister to the Shāh of Persia] which Sheil obtained from a ‘private source’ (ff 490-491).5) Sheil’s report of three incidents involving the use of torture – which had officially been abolished by a firman – and the protests made by both Sheil and Dolgoroukie and the actions taken in each case. The incidents relate to: a ‘barbarous act’ committed by Thamasp Meerza [Ṭahmāsp/Ṭahmāsb Mīrzā], a son of the late Shah and governor of a small district near Tabreez [Tabriz] named Binab, leading to his recall to Tehran; the apparent torture to death of a ‘Mahomedan’ [Muslim] servant of ‘a French adventurer named M. Ferrier’ suspected of robbing the latter’s house; and Sheil’s pecuniary punishment of two Mission staff for the methods they used to elicit confessions from persons suspected of robbing their houses.6) Intelligence from Meshed that Mahomed Akber Khan [Muḥammad Akbar Khān], son of Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy, Amīr of Afghanistan], has laid siege to Candahar [Kandahar] and applied for aid from Yar Mahomed Khan [Yār Muḥammad Khān, ruler of Herat] (apparently because of the refusal of Kohendil Khan [Kuhandil Khān Muḥammadzā’ī, of Candahar] to join him in an attack on the English garrison at Shikarpore [Shikarpur]), and that their agents have arrived in Tehran apparently to seek Persian support against a supposed British invasion of Afghanistan.7) Following instructions from Palmerston, Sheil’s approach to the Government of Herat to ascertain its views on a closer relationship with England, including: a copy of a non-committal letter from Yar Mahomed Khan to Sheil (ff 500-501); a copy of Sheil’s letter to Yar Mahomed offering to send a member of the British Mission to Herat (ff 501-502); and Sheil’s report that the agent of Yar Mahomed claims the latter would not be averse to having an Englishman there, but that the anti-English feeling in Afghanistan currently makes this impossible.8) Sheil’s correspondence with Hajee Meerza Aghassee (ff 494-498) relating to his unsuccessful attempts to persuade the Persian ministers to agree to the suppression of the trade in enslaved persons in the Persian ports of the Persian Gulf, including the Shah’s refusal to commit to ‘a breach of the precepts of the Koran’ (f 494), and Aghassee’s claim that he himself supports abolition.9) Reports that five battalions (3000 men) have arrived in Tehran to form part of the force for the intended expedition to Khorassan [Khorasan], including: the planned objectives of the expedition in Asterabad [Gorgan], Boojnoord [Bojnord] and Kelat [Kalat]; and uncertainty regarding its command and the attendance of the Shah.10) A letter to Sheil from Meerza Kazim [Mīrzā Kāẓim], Agent of Hajee Meerza Aghassee at Meshed, regarding his investigations in Khorassan, Orgenjee [Urgench?], Bokhara, Herat, and Candahar, into the fate of the Englishman Mr Wyburd, ‘who gave himself the appellation and was known under the name of Hajee Ahmed’. Meerza Kazim encloses a letter from a merchant friend of his in Bokhara relating that ‘Hajee Ahmed’ arrived in Bokhara posing as an ‘Ottoman Turk’, stayed at the Court of the Ameer of Bokhara until the latter gave him to Naib Abdoos Semed Khan [Nā’ib ‘Abd al-Ṣamad Khān], and that at that man’s house he later hanged himself.Physical description: 1 item (23 folios)
68. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This part of the volume consists of a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 103 of 1847, dated 27 December 1847. The enclosure is numbered 3 and is dated 14 October 1847.The enclosure consists of a copy of a letter from HM Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, to the Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay, Arthur Malet, enclosing under flying seals copies of despatches addressed to HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Viscount Palmerston, dated 23 to 30 September 1847.The enclosures relate to matters including:Sheil reporting that the Persian Prime Minister Hajee Meerza Aghassee [Ḥājī Mīrzā (ʿAbbās Īravānī) Āqāsī] had several times publicly accused the British Government of having given aid in money to the Salar [Muḥammad-Ḥasan Khān Sālār] and Jaffer Koolee Khan [Jaʿfar Qulī Khān], and that the Shah had said to a member of the British mission that the British Government were behind the ‘disturbances’ in Khorassan [Khorasan]; Sheil writing to Aghassee to demand that the accusation be withdrawn, and that an apology be made by the Persian Government; and the denial of the Shah and Aghassee that they had made the accusation that a ‘Hindoo’ [Hindu] British subject resident in Meshed [Mashhad] had, on account of the British Government given money to the Salar and Jaffer Koolee KhanPersian involvement in Afghanistan, including Sheil addressing a note to Hajee Meerza Aghassee regarding Herat, and stating that Aghassee’s reply repeats indirectly the absence of any intention on the part of the Persian Government to ‘interfere’ with HeratSheil stating that it appears the insurrection in Khorassan will be speedily terminated, and that this has likely prevented ‘complications of a more serious character’, as Sheil has received intelligence that the Russian Minister had told Aghassee that in case of a reverse Russian troops would be ready to assist the Shah in Khorassan, and Aghassee had proclaimed in public more than once that he would make use of that option should the occasion ariseSheil learning that the Russian Minister [Prince Dimitri Ivanovich Dolgorukov, referred to as Dolgorouki in this item] had made an application to the Persian Government for permission to build a hospital on land near Asterabad [Gorgan] opposite the Island of Ashoor Ada [Ashuradeh] for the use of seamen and mariners of Russian ships of war on that coast, and to surround this building as well as the Russian store houses in the same vicinity with a wall; and Sheil reporting that he had represented to the Shah that if he gave his consent to such a proposition it would be equivalent to giving his consent and confirmation to the Russian occupation of Ashoor AdaThe conduct of Mirza Mahomed Ali Khan [Mīrzā Muḥammad ‘Ali Khān], in leaving Constantinople [Istanbul] for France before the ratification of the Treaty of Erzeroom [Erzurum], having been nominated by the Persian Government to exchange the ratifications; Sheil and the Russian Minister, Dolgorouki, anticipating that this would delay the exchange of ratifications; and the Persian Government rejecting the advice of Sheil and Dolgorouki that great delay would be avoided if the Persian Government would provide them with letters directing Mirza Mahomed Ali Khan to hasten his return to ConstantinopleBritish attempts to abolish the transport of African ‘slaves’ [enslaved persons] through the ports of the Persian Gulf, including Sheil addressing a letter to Aghassee intimating that British war ships would examine any Persian vessels in the Persian Gulf suspected of 'slave trading' and liberate any enslaved persons found on board; Sheil’s view that whilst this announcement ‘has ostensibly been distasteful’ to the Persian Government, which declares that such an act would be a breach of treaty, he is nevertheless of the opinion that any obstruction this trade may encounter from British ships of war ‘will in reality be viewed by the Persian Government with considerable apathy’, and that the detention of one Persian vessel and the liberation of any enslaved persons who may be found on board will probably be sufficient to deter other Persian vessels from continuing to engage in the 'slave trade'.The despatches from Sheil to Palmerston include enclosed copies of despatches in French from the Russian foreign minister Count Nesselrode [Karl Robert Vasilyevich] to Prince Dolgorouki, and from the Russian Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United Kingdom, Baron Brunow [Filipp Ivanovich Brunnov] to the Russian Chancellor, relating to Afghanistan. The despatches also include: correspondence between Sheil and Hajee Meerza Aghassee; letters (in French) jointly signed by Sheil and Dolgorouki addressed to Aghassee, and replies from Aghassee; and a letter from Sheil to the Political Resident at Baghdad, Major Henry Creswicke Rawlinson.Enclosure No. 3 also includes:A letter from Sheil to HM Minister Plenipotentiary to the Ottoman Empire, Lord Cowley, dated 5 October 1847, stating that it is the intention of the Persian Government to despatch the ratification of the treaty concluded at Ezeroom by special messenger in seven days to the care of the Persian Consul at ConstantinopleA letter from Sheil to the Secretary to the Government of India, dated 10 October 1847, enclosing an extract from the Delhi Gazettecontaining news ‘from a letter from Tehran’, which Sheil states bears remarkable similarity to his correspondence with the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, copies of which are forwarded to the Governor-General for information. Sheil suggests that as no one in his own office has any correspondence with the northern part of India, this information has been provided by the Native Writers in the office of the Secretary to the Government of India.Physical description: 1 item (46 folios)
69. Persian Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises a copy of an enclosure to a despatch from the Government of Bombay Secret Department to the Secret Committee, Number 15 of 1847, dated 12 February 1847. The enclosures is dated 14 December 1846.The item comprises copies of despatches forwarded, for the information of the Government of Bombay and the Governor-General of India, by Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Sheil, HM Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia [Iran], to Viscount Palmerston, HM Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, with relevant enclosures.The papers cover a number of matters, notably including:Sheil’s report that he has contracted Hajee Syed Noor Doollah, a native of Bokhara [Bukhara] (but which he left twenty years ago) to make enquiries in Bokhara regarding the whereabouts or the fate of Mr Wyburd [Lieutenant William Henry Wybard], and of an English man and woman said to be prisoners captive in Afghanistan and Khiva. Included is a copy of Sheil’s detailed instructions to the agent which contain details of Mr Wyburd who left Tehran twelve years ago to proceed to Khiva by Asterabad [Gorgan], dressed as ‘an Arab’ or ‘a Persian’ and who called himself ‘Hajee Ahmed Arab’ (ff 252-254)Sheil’s report of responses to his enquiries regarding the whereabouts or fate of Mr Wyburd that he has received from: the Political Resident at Bushire [Bushehr]; the Khan of Khiva (f 256); Aga Khan, the Yoomoot Toorkooman [Yomut Turkmen] chief; the Cazee [qadi] of Herat (ff 256-258); and the Acting Agent of the Mission at Meshed [Mashhad] (f 259). These notably comprise versions of a story that a person called ‘Hajee Ahmed’ was said to have been killed or committed suicide at Bokhara, possibly in the house of the Naib, Abdoos Semed Khan [Nā’ib ‘Abd al-Ṣamad Khān]A commercial treaty concluded between Persia and Spain (ff 261-263)The apprehension, expressed to Sheil by the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, of a potential attack on Bushire due to the disaffected state of Tengestan [Tangestan], Desht [Dashti] and Deshtestan [Dashtestan], which the Resident states is caused by the Persian Government’s practice of selling the government of provinces and districts leading to oppressive exactions on the populace.Physical description: 1 item (50 folios)
70. Persian Affairs and Persian Gulf Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 21 dated 29 March 1856. The enclosures are dated 29 January-25 February 1856.The papers comprise:1) Copies of despatches of Charles Augustus Murray, HM Envoy to Persia [Iran], to the Earl of Clarendon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, forwarded for information to the Government of Bombay and the Government of India, with numerous enclosures. They cover subjects including the following:Reports in the Tehran Gazetteof the capture of Candahar [Kandahar] by Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy], and his purported plans to capture HeartReports of the movement of Persian military forces to Khorassan [Khorasan] and Persian plans to repel Dost Mahomed Khan at Herat and any British force in the southern provinces of PersiaPersian claims that the British Government has broken its agreement not to interfere in the internal affairs of Afghanistan, following the production of: letters intercepted by the ruler of Herat, Prince Mohammed Yousuf [Muḥammad Yūsuf Khān, Regent of Herat], purportedly sent by the British Mission to Dost Mahomed Khan, which Murray insists were forged in order to provide a pretext to send troops to Herat; and letters delivered to Richard Stevens, HM Consul in Tehran (for Murray), said to be from ‘several chiefs of the principal Heratee Tribes and factions’ (f 339) proposing to support Britain against Persia (ff 341-342), which Murray claims are also forgeriesA copy of a lengthy anonymous paper (ff 346-356), which Murray claims is a ‘scurrilous libel’ originating from the Persian Government, intended for publication in Europe alleging the: misdemeanors of individual British officials in Tehran leading to the recent break in diplomatic relations; the duplicitousness of the British Government towards Persia; and active British support of Dost Mahomed Khan regarding Candahar and HeratCopies of six of translated letters, forwarded to Murray by Stevens, originating from the Sudr Azem [Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam, Persian Prime Minister], to various officials near the Persian borders with Afghanistan instructing them to cooperate with the approaching Meer Alum Khan [Mīr ‘Ālim Khān, also spelled Meer Allem Khan in this item] who has been ‘nominated to the post of protecting the boundary of Herat and certain other duties’ (f 358)Reports that the ruler of Herat has asked the Persian authorities at Meshed [Mashhad] to delay sending an army in the hopes of settling amicably with Dost Mahomed KhanMurray’s modification of the demands he deemed requisite for the restoration of diplomatic relations with the Persian Government, including an apology, drafted by Murray, which he requires to be signed by the ‘Mooshtehids and Moollahs’ [mujtahids and mullahs] withdrawing their ‘charges and accusations’ against him and the British Mission (f 333)Reports from the British Agent at Sheeraz [Shiraz] of an agreement concluded between the Imaum [Imam] of Muscat and Prince Governor of Fars regarding the port of Bender Abbass [Bandar Abbas], including the principal terms (f 338-339)2) A letter from Murray to the Governor-General of India stating his intention to remain at Tabreez [Tabriz] and his opinion that it may be necessary to remove troops from India for a foreign expedition against Persia in order to ‘ensure for [Britain] repose and respect for many years to come’ (f 365).3) Copies of despatches from Stevens to Murray, covering various matters including:Reports relating to Dost Mahomed Khan’s activities, intentions towards Herat and rumoured deathPersian claims that William Taylour Thomson, former British Envoy at Tehran, administered anti-Persian bribesA protest by Stevens regarding restrictions on British Indian subjects at Kirman [Kerman] and Yezd [Yazd] with regard to wool exports from those provincesA report that the Persian Government has attempted to delay Dost Mahomed Khan’s advance to Herat by creating an alliance with him against BritainPersian instructions to officials in eastern Persia inviting them to cooperate with and place troops at the disposal of Meer Alum Khan for duty on the frontiers and ‘other services’The arrival in Tehran of the first interpreter of the Persian Embassy at St Petersburgh [St Petersburg], bringing news of: the embassy’s financial needs; the request of the Persian ambassador to return to Persia; rumours, said to be false, of a Russian proposal for an alliance with Persia; economic hardship in Russia and the population’s desire for peace [Crimean War 1853-1856]; a rumour that Emperor Alexander wishes to meet the Shah in Tiflis [Tbilisi] next year; and rumours, suspected to be false, that the Russian Government promised the Persian Government monetary inducements to occupy Herat and CandaharIntelligence of the movement of Persian military forces to Shiraz intended for Bushire [Bushehr], Kermanshah, and Mohamura [Khorramshahr].4) Despatches from Commander James Felix Jones, Indian Navy, Acting Resident in the Persian Gulf, Bushire, to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay, notably covering the following matters:Murray’s advice that Jones neither take any action following the ‘maritime outrage committed by the dependents of the Sheikh of Chaab’ (f 378) nor alienate the chiefs of any other Arab tribes in southern Persia, especially since Mohumrah [Khorramshahr] is a potential landing point for a British expeditionConcern of the Persian authorities at Shiraz at the appearance of the steam vessels Victoriaand Ajdahafrom Bombay, and Persia’s removal of their troops and armaments from the island of Karrack [Kharg, also known as Khark]The continuing dispute between the Imam of Muscat and Persian Government over Bunder Abbas [Bandar Abbas] and the alleged plans of the Imam to attack Karrack and Bushire, and to recruit mercenaries from Gulf Arab tribes and tribes in Mesopotamia [Iraq] subject to [Ottoman] TurkeyIntelligence from the British Agent at Shiraz on Persian military strength, and the strategy of the Prince Governor of Fars regarding BushireJones’s correspondence with Murray, the Governor of Bushire, and the Commodore of the Indian Naval Squadron in the Gulf, to quell the alarm caused by recent British Squadron target practice exercises in the Bushire Roads.Physical description: 1 item (63 folios)
71. Persian Affairs and Persian Gulf Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 24 dated 2 April 1856. The enclosures are dated 29 February-24 March 1856.The papers comprise:1) Copies of despatches of Charles Augustus Murray, HM Envoy to Persia [Iran], at Tabreez [Tabriz], to the Earl of Clarendon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, forwarded for information to the Government of Bombay and the Government of India, including relevant enclosures. They include the following matters:Intelligence that Persia has negotiated a commercial treaty with France and allegedly attempted to introduce a clause whereby police superintendence of Gulf commerce would in future be entrusted to France, and has a similar projected treaty with the United States of America, which Murray criticizes as proof of the ‘hypocritical semblance of friendship’ (f 444) of the Persian Prime MinisterClaims of the: disarray, weakness and mutinous disposition of the Persian Army; and the Persian Government’s unpopularity with the local populace, including reports of rebellions in Khorassan [Khorasan] and Isfahan against the central and local authoritiesA description of the state of affairs in Herat, including Murray’s assertions that: news of the seizure and occupation of Herat by Persian forces is entirely without foundation; the present ruler of Herat, Prince Mahomed Yoosuf [Muḥammad Yūsuf Khān, Regent of Herat], did not recover the throne with either aid from or the knowledge of Persia; Prince Yoosuf wishes to be independent but has probably solicited the support of the Persian Government in response to internal enemies and the advance of Dost Mahomed Khan [Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy]; Persia may use the situation to incite trouble in Afghanistan in order to divert troops from India to that area and has recruited influential inhabitants of Herat to promote the Shah’s capture of that town and Candahar [Kandahar]Intelligence regarding Persian military movements at Kirmanshah [Kermanshah] and the despatch of troops, guns and ammunition to the southern frontier of Persia.2) Copies of despatches from Richard Stevens, HM Consul at Tehran, to Murray, forwarded for information to the Government of Bombay and the Government of India, with relevant enclosures. They cover a number of matters including the following:French and [Ottoman] Turkish concerns regarding Persian military movements and preparations in KermanshahReports and rumours of: Persian intentions to capture Herat in order to deflect Dost Mahommed Khan’s purported plans; Herat’s successful capture by Persian forces; and Persia’s intention to seize CandaharDetails of Persian military command appointments, for forces due to proceed to Affghanistan [Afghanistan], Mohamera [Khorramshahr], Seistan [Sistan] and Bushire [Bushehr] (f 457)News that the Persian Government has authorised Jean David to conclude a commercial treaty with Austria similar to that concluded last summer with France (f 467), and copy of a draft treaty he has been authorised to conclude with the United States of America (ff 458-465)Copy of a note containing the Persian Prime Minister’s instructions to the Persian Ambassador at St Petersburgh [St Petersburg] to ensure that Russia considers the situation of Persia during the [Crimean War, 1853-1856] peace negotiations with Britain (f 466)Substance of an article in the Tehran Gazetteby the Persian Minister of Foreign Affairs accusing Britain of supporting Dost Mahomed Khan (ff 469-472); substance of a circular by the Persian Prime Minister addressed to all Foreign Missions explaining the reasons compelling Persia to adopt measures against Dost Mahomed Khan; and copies of twelve letters ostensibly from Affghan sirdars [Afghan leaders] professing their loyalty to the Shah and the Persian Government (ff 478-491)Copy of a letter which, Stevens states, the Persian Government ‘pretends was written by Mr Secretary Thomson to Syd Mahommed Khan [Sayyid Muḥammad Khān] of Herat’ apparently undermining the Persian Government and promoting British interests in Herat (ff 492-493).3) Copies of despatches of Commander James Felix Jones, Acting Resident in the Persian Gulf, to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay, maintaining that the steam vessels Victoria, Adjahaand the HC [Honourable Company] sloop of war Cliveare required at Bushire considering the political situation with Persia.4) Copy of a despatch from the Secretary to the Government of India, to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay, indicating a reluctance to escalate the quarrel with Persia due to uncertainty regarding Persia’s true intentions in Afghanistan, and emphasising that until orders are received from the Secret Committee which show that the despatch of an expedition is called for by the British Government, the Government of Bombay should not comply with Mr Murray’s requisition for troops, but may however institute naval and military preparations for an expedition.Physical description: 1 item (61 folios)
72. Persian Affairs and Persian Gulf Affairs
- Description:
- Abstract: This item comprises enclosures to a despatch from the Government of Bombay [Mumbai] Secret Department to the Secret Committee [Bombay Secret Letter], No. 8 dated 16 January 1856. The enclosures are dated 3-22 December 1855.The item comprises copies of despatches, with relevant enclosures, from Charles Augustus Murray, HM Envoy in Persia [Iran], to the Earl of Clarendon, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, forwarded to the Government of Bombay and the Government of India, and from Commander James Felix Jones, Indian Navy, Acting Resident in the Persian Gulf, to the Secretary to the Government, Bombay.Murray’s despatches relate to his suspension of diplomatic relations between the British Mission in Tehran and the Persian Government in connection with: the opposition of the Sadr Azim [Ṣadr-i Aʿẓam, Persian Prime Minister, spelled in various ways in this item] to Murray’s appointment of Meerza Hashem Khan [Mīrzā Hāshim Khān] to the British Agency at Sheeraz [Shiraz]; the Sadr Azim’s imprisonment of Meerza Hashem Khan’s wife; and the ‘insults’ and ‘calumnies’ circulated by the Persian Government against Murray and other British officials in Tehran. Notably covered are:Murray’s assertion of the Sadr Azim’s excessive influence over the ShahThe purported feud between the families of Meerza Hashem Khan and the Sadr AzimThe Sadr Azim’s contention that there has never been a British Agent at Shiraz and that Meerza Hashem Khan was in the pay of the Persian Government and therefore ineligible for employment by the BritishAttempts by Nicolas Prosper Bourée, French Consul at Tehran, to mediate between Murray and the Persian GovernmentMurray’s decision to haul down the flag of the British Mission in TehranMurray’s vehement denial of Persian claims that both he and William Taylour Thomson, the former Chargé d’Affaires at the Court of Persia, had affairs with the wife of Meerza Hashem Khan (see ff 101-102, 103-106 and 116-117) and that Thomson originally took Meerza Hashem Khan under the protection and employment of the British Mission for this reasonMurray’s refusal to rehoist the flag unless the Meerza’s wife is released and an apology is received from the Sadr Azim for the ‘gross and groundless’ ‘calumnies’ (f 98)Murray’s arrangements for the withdrawal the British Mission to Turkish [Ottoman] Territory, and (despite the opposition of the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs) for HM Consul, Richard Stevens, to remain in TehranThe Persian Government’s insistence on its continued friendship with the British Government.The despatches include copies of Murray’s correspondence with the Sadr Azim and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and copies of notes written by the Shah.Also covered in Murray’s despatches are:Rumours of the death of Dost Mahomed Khan [Emir Dūst Muḥammad Khān Bārakzāy]Reports of the seizure of Herat by Prince Mahomed Yoosuf [Muḥammad Yūsuf Khān, Regent of Herat] and the apparent state of ‘civil war’ in Afghanistan (f 67)Intelligence from the British Agent at Meshed [Mashhad] relating the story of Hassan Ali Khan [Ḥasan ‘Alī Khān] in Bokhara [Bukhara] concerning his encounters with a man he suspects is a European [‘Perhaps Ferguson’ is noted in the left hand margin of folio 64]Russian incursions into the territory of the Khan of Khokand [Muḥammad Khudāyār Khān, Khān of Kokand]The Imam of Muscat’s letter asking Murray to mediate in his dispute with the Persian Government concerning ownership of Bender Abbass [Bandar Abbas].Jones’s despatches cover his reaction to the news of the suspension of diplomatic relations between Britain and Persia, including his: concerns about the defences of Bushire [Bushehr] and a potential conflict there with Persia; communications with Commodore Richard Ethersey, Commanding the Indian Naval Squadron in the Persian Gulf, with regard to strengthening the squadron in the Bushire Roads to protect British subjects; and measures to establish good communications with Murray. Also included is a copy of a ruckum [raqam] from HRH Prince Tamasp Meerza Prince Governor of Fars [Shāhzādah Ṭahmāsp/Ṭahmāsb Mīrzā Muʾayyid al-Dawlah], to the News Writer and Agent for Foreign Affairs, Bushire, intimating he has no quarrel with the Resident.Physical description: 1 item (76 folios)